MOTHER
AND CHILD WELFARE AND RESEARCH FOUNDATION INDIA is a
NON-PROFIT secular organization, with RESIDENTIAL FACILITIES, Fully Equipped with the Pre school and School Session, providing Education and Training to all kinds of
CHILDREN and ADULTS with Behavior Problems and Multiple Disabilities like Autism, Slow Learners, Aspergers, ADHD, Mental Retardation, Down Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy, Hearing, Speech and Visual Impairment,
etc.

Speech disorder may manifest itself in various forms - delayed speech during childhood, stammering, speech disorders due to injuries or congenital defects like cerebral palsy, cleft palate and so on. Many a time, speech disorders are accompanied by hearing disorders and vice versa. These may be either physiological or even psychological. A person trained in this field would be able to assess hearing defects and give the required therapy. A speech therapist would be able to use his skills to help people communicate. Some of the tools of his trade would be to teach sign language to a person who is totally incapable of speech, to improve diction and articulation of those who stammer and to teach those hard of hearing how to lip-read. Learning these skills would enable better communication and thus improve the quality of life for the challenged individuals.

The study of speech and hearing disorders is called Audiology. This is the branch of science that deals with human speech and hearing imbalances. The person who studies this rare subject is called Audiologist. An Audiologist can fix the causes of speech and hearing disorders in a person. He / she employ different techniques i.e. hearing tests, otoacoustic emission measurements,
videonystagmography, and electrophysiologic tests etc to establish whether an individual is hearing impaired or not. Because of growing number of speech and hearing impaired individuals both children and adult, the demand for expert audiologist is on the rise and Audiology is recognized as a profession.

The Audiology and Speech Pathology in India was started as a profession by a group of enthusiastic professionals like Dr. N
Rathna, Dr. S Nikam, Mr. Ramesh Oza and Dr. Vijay Shah. The first Audiology & Speech Language Therapy program was started in 1966 at T.N.Medical College and BYL Nair Ch. Hospital in
Mumbai. In the same year, the Government of India established All India Institute of Speech and Hearing
(www.aiishmysore.com) which became the country's leading Institute in the field of communication disorders.

Now, there are currently 20 Universities (8 Governmental and 14
private) institute in India which provide Speech Pathology and
Audiology programs. These programs are accredited by
Rehabilitation council of India (RCI). Majority of these
institutes provide excellent multidisciplinary clinical setup for
persons with communication disorders.

The profession of Audiologist offers both; the stature and the job
satisfaction and is mainly suitable for those who feel joy in helping
others. To practice audiology, a person needs to have either Bachelors /
Masters Degree in Audiology and be registered with Indian Speech and
Hearing Association (ISHA) or Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI). There
is a number of government and private health care agencies in which
provide speech and hearing services.

A degree in speech and hearing is recognized both in India and overseas
for practice as speech and hearing expert. Candidates having degree in
speech and hearing can get employment in different government and private
institutions.

The Indian speech and hearing experts are in demand across the globe;
particularly in west because of their unique multilingual / multicultural
background and excellent communication in English. There is a rapidly
growing community of qualified and skilled Indian Speech-Language
Pathologists and Audiologists across the world; mainly in North America,
Singapore and Australia.